Begun, the State Brand Wars Have

As the health reform law exchanges get closer to launch, we're seeing an interesting burst of marketing creativity that shines a spotlight on the various cultural items that differentiate U.S. states in the public imagination. Sarah Kliff reports on Minnesota's playful new "MNsure" marketing campaign which features a slapstick Paul Bunyan and the slogan "land of 10,000 reasons to get health care" (a play on "land of 10,000 lakes").

Given the unavoidably positional nature of state identity, I do wonder how the folks in the Minnesota state tourism office are holding up. When I hear "10,000 reasons to get health care" and see lots of images of horrible accidents involving Minnesota-centric activities, vacation alternatives along the lines of beach-lounging in Florida start seeming relatively more attractive.

edit: New York state's got a decent pitch also.